Anime Profile: Aria the Animation

Aria the Animation is a very sweet, very relaxing anime series with beautiful animation and just the right amount of comedy. It's set in the future on another planet covered in water, but this science-fiction aspect takes a back seat to the characters and the goings on of their daily life. There are no giant robots or evil aliens or warmongering armies, just a group of characters who we meet and quickly begin to share in their experiences.

The main character of the series is a 15 year old girl named Akari Mizunashi. She is a new arrival to planet Aqua, choosing to come this new watery home because she wants to fulfil her dream of becoming an undine (a gondolier). She begins her training under the most popular undine in the city, Alicia Florence. And while Alicia may run Aria Company, the president is a cat named President Aria, simply because cats with blue eyes are supposed to be lucky so all the undine companies have blue-eyed cats as their presidents.

The first episode finds Akari meeting a young girl named Ai, who demands that she be given a gondola tour, despite that Alicia is away and Akari is still in training so not allowed to take customers on tours by herself. Clever little Ai is able to talk her way around this by insisting that Akari take her not as a customer, but as a friend... oh yes, it's the start of a beautiful friendship!

I was pleasantly surprised with this anime series, and would definitely recommend, especially if you're seeking a break from over-the-top action or comedy series.